Druze residents in southern Syria told Israel Hayom that "the jihadist attacks on the towns are not over" and described the current situation as a "deceptive calm." They expressed deep concern that Islamist forces affiliated with the regime of Abu Muhammad al-Julani in Damascus "want to take revenge on us." However, they added that armed men in the Druze regions were on alert and ready to respond to any threats.
Additionally, Druze residents in the region called for "international protection after it became clear that this government [that of al-Julani – ed.] has failed to fulfill the most basic duty of any government in the world: ensuring public safety. That's why we demand that the international community and the United Nations take appropriate action, because this regime has placed us under siege. We can no longer coexist with a state led by a terrorist and his fellow terrorists. Thousands attacked us, and tragically, some of them were our fellow Syrians. Bashar al-Assad destroyed the country, and now al-Julani is destroying it as well."
The demand follows a statement Thursday by Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri, the spiritual leader of the Druze community in Syria, calling for international intervention to protect the Druze minority from what he called ongoing massacres. Al-Hijri added that the regime in Damascus had completely lost the trust of the Druze.
At the same time, there is significant opposition within the Druze community in southern Syria to Israeli military strikes. Sheikh Laith al-Balous said, "The Druze do not need protection from anyone. The Interior Ministry has begun fulfilling its duties in the Suwayda Governorate, but there are parties that do not want the agreement to succeed." Sheikh Ali Khatibeh of Jaramana told the Lebanese news outlet Al-Modon that Israeli statements about protecting the town constituted "interference in internal affairs and an attempt to incite conflict in Syria." He emphasized that the Druze "can protect themselves without foreign intervention."
Meanwhile, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported a brief lull in the fighting in Druze areas of the Suwayda and Damascus governorates. Islamist regime forces were reportedly deployed in the suburbs of the capital, and there were reports of Druze youth fleeing the area. On Saturday, three armed Druze men, a civilian, and a child were shot dead in the town of Sahnaya. Over the past few days, the Observatory has reported 118 people killed, most of them Druze, both armed and civilians. Thirty of the dead were Islamist fighters affiliated with the regime. The rest died in clashes, ambushes, or were executed or murdered.
Against this backdrop, Syrian media reported a wave of Israeli airstrikes on Friday night targeting several governorates, including Daraa, Damascus, Hama, and Latakia. Military posts, air defense bases, and surface-to-air missile infrastructure were among the sites hit. Reports said at least one person was killed and four others injured.
